1. Mexican license plates with a bumper sticker that says, "Honor student at 'blank' elementary"

2. Going to Dillards and having the saleslady say, "No hablo inlges, hableme en espanol".

3. Going to HEB and seeing the family in front of me 2 carts full of food, mom with a coach purse, nails done, all the kids in polo gear and jordans and pay for the groceries with a LONE STAR CARD....then climb into their cadillac escalade with mexican plates and drive off.

4. Watching the local news give away money/gift certificate to a poor family for thanksgiving and do the show from the familys home....and while mom is emotional on the couch whilst she receives her money they cut away to the kids playing on their Wii....

I'll think of a few others and post them when I remember.

Here's my thoughts:

If your kid attends school in the US, you need to live here and drive a car with american tags. Stop cheating the system and do the right thing. The rest of us do and pay for insurance as well as pay taxes so your kid can get a free education.

Lady at Dillards, we live in the states, learn to habla the local language. You want to speak spanish? Go back to mexico...you want to work here? Live here and learn the language.

HEB fiasco, our government needs to do a better job of asking the right questions to these losers. I hate they take advantage of the system and get away with it. While my family and I are doing the right thing by paying into these programs these clowns abuse it. We have to grocery shop on a budget and they do what they want. It isn't right.

The local news, lady, if you're going to invite the news over for them to do a story on your sorry ass, at least hide the $300 Wii so they can give you the $300 for your thanksgiving dinner. Or sell the fecking Wii so your kids can eat.

1. You have absolutely no idea where these people live. Granted, some may actually live in Mexico, however some do live and work in the US, pay taxes, are American citizens, etc. Not all of them are cheating the system. If they are, well then I agree they need to stop.

2. Completely agree. I hate that.

3. Completely agree. I hate that.

4. Nothing wrong with giving to a poor family for Thanksgiving. If they bought their kids a wii, I have no problem with it. I would if they showed an expensive set of golf clubs, an ATV, motorcycle or something like that.

Sad thing is these businesses hire them anyways without knowing a lick of English and it pisses me off!! Why? So they can accommadate the natioanls that come here probably that spend all their money there and then leave the boxes in the parking lot. Biggest pet peeve...ever!

1. It's hard for many of us to judge when many of our ancestors came from other countries to this great nation 1, 2, or 3 generations ago looking for better opportunities...

2. Although sometimes rude and entitled, nationals contribute ALOT to the Valley economy. Can't blame a local store for catering to a huge segment of their customers. Would be nice if they spoke both idiomas though...

3. Can't figure this one out. Most if not all federal/state programs have fraud & abuse going on but they also help lots of those less fortunate...

4. Again, looks real bad when someones getting a gift cert and they have a truck with nice rims parked outside, but cant blame parents for buying their kids a Wii.

Just my dos centavos...

The thing that the OP hates to see in the valley were probably first voiced to me and or noticed by me 28 years ago when my family moved here. They ain't going to change, no how, no way and they are only going to get worse.

Sometime in the mid-90's the Valley quit being the Valley and became Mexico lite. It still has some plusses, not as many as before, but a few.

I agree with everything.

I was in HEB the other day with my wife, and there was a lady in front of me with nice clothes, nice purse, nice nails - the whole 9 yards, and the little boy in the front of the cart was playing a PSP or something. Her cart was LOADED with food - all kinds of stuff. I made it a point to say very loudly, "I bet she pays for all of this stuff with a Lonestar Card," and sure enough, out comes the Lonestar Card. She looks back at me with a face like, "STFU guero". I then proceeded to say very loudly, "Gee it must be nice that I'm paying for all of this. When do I get one also?" I even had the cashier snickering.

I FU$%ING HATE that. Probably my BIGGEST pet peeve of them all of living in the valley.

quote:

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I made it a point to say very loudly, "I bet she pays for all of this stuff with a Lonestar Card,"

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I completely agree with your sentiments, but why would you make it a point to do this? That's just extremely rude.

A classic moment is when they have two shopping carts full of things spanning moon pies to menudo to powdered sugar to 11 pounds of hot dogs and about 20% of the items don't qualify for the Lone Star Card. Then you get the following:
-Arguing with the cashier about how it does qualify at the other HEB.
-Trying to raise enough cash to cover the moon pies and Budweiser.
-Arguing with the 8 kids about what to put back.

Back before the LSC the fraud that used to go on with food stamps in the Valley was astounding. I remember my first day in a public school in McAllen, I had a guy in my 2nd period class offer me the $1.00 stamps for $0.50. I didn't even know what they were.

There were like several "casas de cambio" in the bad areas where folks would go and exchange the stamps for cash, for about $0.20-$0.25 on the dollar and you could buy a dollar stamp for around $0.40-$0.50. Lots of the small little grocery stores in the barrio shut down after they went to the card. One of the places we used to buy beer as HS kids would also sell you anything they had for the food stamps.

It is all just rife with corruption. I have always felt like the only way this should be done is to hand out the food directly, and it should be only basics.

LoneStar Card you say?

Where can I get one?

quote:

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Then you get the following:
-Arguing with the cashier about how it does qualify at the other HEB.
-Trying to raise enough cash to cover the moon pies and Budweiser.
-Arguing with the 8 kids about what to put back.

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I have seen this sooo many times. LOL

It's a damn shame. There is way too much misuse in that system. I can't believe they have any real controls or auditing in place.

Born and raised in Brownsville, graduated from BHS in 1953, left RGV or good in 1958, never to return. Now live in MS, see same problems here, much of Mexico has moved here, along with other problems. Our country is becoming one big welfare state, why work when you can live on the state. Favorite is several carts full of everything you can imagine, pay for beer, cigs, etc with a wad of cash that would choke a horse. I decided to join the mob, retired!!

"57"

Should have asked for a manager at Dillards. She would have started speaking English or you could have had a piece of managers butt for hiring non English employees.

I hate to see the RGV

i will get back to this thread